I cannot live without mine. I had an old rival one that broke after 10 years and now I have a cuisinart that I cannot live without.

I use it to puree stuff all the time. I guess it depends on the type of cooking you do whether you really use it or not but in the type of cooking I do - Indian origin it's a must for me. I use it to puree my beans, make my rice pudding smooth, blend sauces, make yogurt lassi and the list goes on and on.

It beats removing my heavy kitchen aid blender everytime I need a quick whirl plus I can use it directly in the pot and while the contents are still hot without splattering.

I use it to puree soups, sauces right in the pot. Mine has a detachable blade section that can go into the dishwasher for easy cleaning. Much easier than using and cleaning a traditional blender for these jobs.

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"If you want to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first create the universe." -Carl Sagan

Your Mom is giving you a very thoughtful gift. I like all the ideas that Yakuta had for using it. Some of the things that were listed are hard to achieve with just basic kitchen utensils. I like the idea that they can be used in a hot pot.

Also looks like it wouldn't take up to much storage space.

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"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." --- Thomas Edison

In this link you'll find several posts that are regarding the hand held blenders. I have one that I've used a couple of times but I have no idea which storage box it's in and it's not worth the effort to seek it out! That's my opinion.

Location: I live in the Heartland of the United States - Western Kentucky

Posts: 15,167

Like GB, I use mine infrequently but am happy to have it when I need it. I love it for pureeing cream soups and that I can put it right in my cooking pot. Mine's easy to clean because, like Andy M., mine comes apart for cleaning in the dishwasher.

Congratulations on a wonderful birthday gift. Have fun with it.

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"As a girl I had zero interest in the stove." - Julia Child
This is real inspiration. Look what Julia became!